Night two of The Rose of Tralee 2023 picked up right where night one left off, with great energy from all 14 Roses onstage, emotional moments aplenty and an impromptu rendition of Happy Birthday for one very special granny!
Audrey Donohue rounds up our top moments from the second night of The Rose of Tralee 2023...
The heartfelt moment of the night
There wasn't a dry eye in the house when the Clare Rose, Aisling O'Connor, spoke about the tough few years she and her five brothers have endured, losing their father in a tragic accident in 2018, and their mother to cancer in 2021.
Heaping praise on her local community in Feakle, Co Clare, she spoke passionately, and gratefully, about how the locals rallied around her, and her family, after the death of their parents. She said they supported them in various ways, including leaving bags of groceries outside the front door and quietly paying for electricity bills.
Encapsulating the real spirit of the Irish community, she even reduced presenter Kathryn Thomas to tears.
Hitting the right note
Talent was in abundance on night two of the competition, with some strong Irish dancing, whistle-playing, country music and contemporary dance on display.
But it was the South Australia Rose, Charlotte Burton, who stole the show with an emotionally-charged and highly-personal version of I'll Take You Home Again Kathleen, which she dedicated to her granny Kathleen, who has dementia.
Charlotte, who also spoke about living with autism, said her granny struggles to remember names and other events but loves and recalls music.
This song was particularly poignant, as Charlotte's grandfather, who died last year, used to sing this song to his wife.
Boot Scootin' Boogie!
It wouldn't be the Rose of Tralee without a Texas Rose getting the host to do some line dancing!
Texas' Eden Kasprak played a blinder for her party piece, getting Dáithí in one of his best outfits of the competition so far - a star-spangled jacket - and raising the roof to the sounds of Boot Scootin' Boogie.
Birthday girl
The Washington DC Rose, Siobhán Spiak, made sure that her granny had a very memorable birthday as the entire audience serenaded her with a charming version of Happy Birthday.
The icing on the cake, literally, was presenter Kathryn Thomas sneaking up behind her, wielding a massive cake, much to the bemusement of the 88-year-old.
Inspirational and important words from the Sydney Rose
Sydney Rose Aoife Butler's heartfelt rendition of The Galway Shawl was made even more poignant after she spoke movingly about her late brother Matthew, who died by suicide seven years ago.
Working now as a mental health nurse in Sydney, she spoke about the importance of everyone knowing, no matter how they may be feeling, that they are loved and important, and that help is available if you need it from medical professionals like herself - an important message from the Wexford woman.
More:
New York Rose is 2023 International Rose of Tralee
Rose of Tralee 2023: Best moments from night one
Click here to watch all the action for both night on RTÉ Player
